*arbaiþi

Reconstruction

Ringe and Taylor reconstruct *arbaiþi for Proto-West Germanic, beside a stem *arbaidi- with *d,^[1][2] and also give the form with the final vowel lost, *arbaiþ.^[3] Wiktionary has *arbaiþi.^[4]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *arbaiþiz (“hardship, hard labour”),^[2][4] which Ringe and Taylor cite as *arbaiþiz, *arbaidi-, Kroonen as *arbaidi- and Köbler as *arbaiþi-, *arbaidi-.^[2][5][6] Kroonen takes it for a ti-stem, probably formed to an unattested stative verb *arbēn-.^[5] In the second syllable the West Germanic forms have *ai, not *ē, apparently because it bore a secondary stress.^[2]

Morphology

A feminine i-stem.^[7][8] Old High German also has a neuter ja-stem arbeiti, found only in glosses,^[7] and Kroonen compares the neuter collective Old English earfeðe and Old Saxon arbēdi, from *arbaidja-.^[5] Old Frisian arbēd is neuter.^[9]

Evidence

The noun is attested in all the West Germanic languages: Old Saxon arƀed, Old High German arbeit, Old English earfoþ and Old Frisian arbēd.^[2] In Old English it passed through *ærbāþ: *æ was broken before *rC,^[2] the secondarily stressed *ai became ā and was then rounded,^[1] and the long vowel of the inner syllable was shortened in the dative *ærbāþǣ, giving earfoþe.^[3] Old Dutch arbeit glosses Latin tribulatio and labor in the Middle Franconian psalms of the 9th century,^[10] and ONW cites ⟨arbeyd⟩ from Williram's commentary of 1100.^[11] Old Saxon has it in the Heliand as ⟨arbed⟩, ⟨arabad⟩ and ⟨arbid⟩.^[12]

Competing analyses

EWA finds the suffix, ⟨-eit-⟩ in Old High German and *-aiđ- or *-iđ- in Germanic, limited to Germanic and still unexplained.^[7] It reports that Johannes Schmidt rejected Germanic *-aiđ-, which in an unstressed syllable should have given Old High German *arbêt, and proposed an early epenthesis of -i-, *arbaithi- from *arbathi, a change not otherwise found in Germanic;^[7] Sievers, on the other hand, took the Old High German participle ⟨giarbitite⟩ in the Tatian for a scribal error.^[7] Ringe and Taylor explain the *ai of the second syllable by secondary stress.^[2]

Meanings

1. hardship^[1][4]
2. hard labour, toil^[2][5]

Old Saxon also used the word for "affliction" and "effort",^[8] and Old High German for "suffering", seldom for "work".^[7] Old Frisian used it for "effort", "work" and "distress".^[9]

Derivatives

• *arbaidōn "to work, to toil", which Wiktionary reconstructs;^[4] Old Saxon has the class II weak verb arvidōn (“to torment, to toil”)^[13] and Old High German arbeitōn (“to torment, to oppress”).^[14]
• *arbaidijan "to work", which Wiktionary reconstructs;^[4] Old High German has the class I weak verb arbeiten (“to torment, to toil”)^[15] and Old Dutch arvethen (“to toil”).^[16]

Reflexes

• Old English: earfoþe (“toil, trouble, hardship, suffering”)^[17]
• Old Frisian: arbēd (“effort, work, distress”)^[9]
• Old Saxon: arvēd (“toil, trouble”)^[12]
• Old Dutch: arbeit (“toil, trouble, suffering”)^[10]
• Old High German: arbeit (“toil, trouble, effort, suffering”)^[7]

References

1. ^ a b c Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 171
2. ^ a b c d e f g h Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 180
3. ^ a b Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 298
4. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *arbaiþi
5. ^ a b c d Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 33
6. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *arbaiþi-
7. ^ a b c d e f g Lloyd, Albert L.; Springer, Otto; Lühr, Rosemarie, et al. (1988–), Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Althochdeutschen, Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht; online ewa.saw-leipzig.de, p. s.v. arbeit
8. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. arvêd
9. ^ a b c Hofmann, Dietrich; Popkema, Anne Tjerk (2008), Altfriesisches Handwörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. arbeid
10. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard, Altniederfränkisches Wörterbuch, online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. arbeit
11. ^ Oudnederlands Woordenboek (2009–), Instituut voor de Nederlandse Taal, Leiden; gtb.ivdnt.org, p. s.v. arbeit
12. ^ a b Tiefenbach, Heinrich (2010), Altsächsisches Handwörterbuch / A Concise Old Saxon Dictionary, Berlin / New York: De Gruyter, p. s.v. arved
13. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. arvidōn
14. ^ Lloyd, Albert L.; Springer, Otto; Lühr, Rosemarie, et al. (1988–), Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Althochdeutschen, Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht; online ewa.saw-leipzig.de, p. s.v. arbeitôn
15. ^ Lloyd, Albert L.; Springer, Otto; Lühr, Rosemarie, et al. (1988–), Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Althochdeutschen, Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht; online ewa.saw-leipzig.de, p. s.v. arbeiten
16. ^ Köbler, Gerhard, Altniederfränkisches Wörterbuch, online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. arvethen
17. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. earfoþe